The author of The God Delusion, who has previously described religious education provided by faith schools as a form of child abuse, said that the effect was "utterly deplorable" especially as it lasted until their university years.

The prominent atheist said he could live with some faith schools that are vaguely religious and saved his fire for the schools that were teaching "total nonsense".

Mr Dawkins, former Oxford University professor and evolutionary biologist, made his comments as he spoke to the Times Educational Supplement about the launch of a new science book.

He said that while he opposed faith schools as a whole, it was the Muslim ones that worried him the most.

"Occasionally, my colleagues lecturing in universities lament having undergraduate students walk out of their classes when they talk about evolution – this is almost entirely Muslims," he said.

"So I think there's a very, very pernicious influence that is lasting up to the university years. That must be coming from certain schools."

He said that he noticed the "utterly deplorable" effect they were having first hand after visiting a Muslim school in Leicester as part of a documentary he made last year called Faith Schools Menace?

"Every single person I met believes if there is any disagreement between the Koran and science, then the Koran wins," he said.